Best reef salt for a nano reef?

[iDream]

thanks everyone i was trying to get everyone's opinion on their own favorite salts and why, and if there was a better salt for a nano reef, like has less of certain minerals etc to benefit my tank.

and thanks for the tip X! lol

[cabezon]

for ease and comfort or a nano reef, I would just pay the $6 for a 5 gal of SW. You will never use a whole bucket of salt, and will have wasted your money the first time it gets wet and turns to concrete. I use Reef Crystals. it comes in a box with 4 50 gallon bags in it. Ask one of your reef buddies to sell you a bag, and you will be set for life. really, if you do a one gallon PWC every other week, one bag will last 2 years if it doesn't get wet. Is it humid on the east coast? because it sure is here.

Do you really want to spend more on your filter than you did on your aquarium? there does come a point where you just have to weigh the cost/benefit ratio. 30 cents gets you a gallon of filtered water at the grocery store. You can find "zero water" pitchers for $30 at Comp USA. Pour the filtered RO water through the pitcher filter, and bam 0ppm top off water. But wait! it even comes with a TDS meter (A ten dollar value!) lol

If Palm Bay was near Tampa, I'd hook you up.

And buckets are very cheap at Home Deepo

[mr_X]

i'd love to see a pitcher that actually pours out zero TDS water, and does it without changing out filter cartridges constantly.

[Magma]

right now I use Instant Ocean Reef Salt (orange label not purple) but I think my next bucket is going to be H2Ocean Pro salt, the bucket is so heavy and everyone I have talked to says its the best salt around so I will give it a try
D-D H2Ocean Pro Plus Salt Mix (23KG)

[cabezon]

Originally Posted by mr_X

i'd love to see a pitcher that actually pours out zero TDS water, and does it without changing out filter cartridges constantly.

It's not a Brita, it is a different cartridge with a DI resin after carbon. it works great.

caveat-- it will last longer if the TDS of the input water is low. That's why I recommend using RO water from the machine at the grocery store. 5 gallons for $1.50. If you use it with tap water, it will of course use up the DI fast.

[mwilliams]

Originally Posted by cabezon

for ease and comfort or a nano reef, I would just pay the $6 for a 5 gal of SW. You will never use a whole bucket of salt, and will have wasted your money the first time it gets wet and turns to concrete. I use Reef Crystals. it comes in a box with 4 50 gallon bags in it. Ask one of your reef buddies to sell you a bag, and you will be set for life. really, if you do a one gallon PWC every other week, one bag will last 2 years if it doesn't get wet. Is it humid on the east coast? because it sure is here.

Do you really want to spend more on your filter than you did on your aquarium? there does come a point where you just have to weigh the cost/benefit ratio. 30 cents gets you a gallon of filtered water at the grocery store. You can find "zero water" pitchers for $30 at Comp USA. Pour the filtered RO water through the pitcher filter, and bam 0ppm top off water. But wait! it even comes with a TDS meter (A ten dollar value!) lol

If Palm Bay was near Tampa, I'd hook you up.

And buckets are very cheap at Home Deepo

What is the name of this Pitcher at Comp USA? I would like to go and pick one up at lunch time today we have a Comp USA about 5 minutes away from the office I work at.

[iDream]

Originally Posted by cabezon

for ease and comfort or a nano reef, I would just pay the $6 for a 5 gal of SW. You will never use a whole bucket of salt, and will have wasted your money the first time it gets wet and turns to concrete. I use Reef Crystals. it comes in a box with 4 50 gallon bags in it. Ask one of your reef buddies to sell you a bag, and you will be set for life. really, if you do a one gallon PWC every other week, one bag will last 2 years if it doesn't get wet. Is it humid on the east coast? because it sure is here.

Do you really want to spend more on your filter than you did on your aquarium? there does come a point where you just have to weigh the cost/benefit ratio. 30 cents gets you a gallon of filtered water at the grocery store. You can find "zero water" pitchers for $30 at Comp USA. Pour the filtered RO water through the pitcher filter, and bam 0ppm top off water. But wait! it even comes with a TDS meter (A ten dollar value!) lol

If Palm Bay was near Tampa, I'd hook you up.

And buckets are very cheap at Home Deepo

yeah i know im gonna be sticking to buying right now for ease, and so i have an excuse to go to the lfs lol. but when i move i have no idea if i'll be able to do it and a pretty much one time purchase of a 200G bucket of salt would make me feel better each time i mix some up. and yes, it is extremely humid over here, especially since i'm like 20 minutes from the beach and the perpetual rain spots (you know how it goes in florida, if you don't like the weather, wait 10 minutes :p)

As for an RO/DI me and JenatronQT3.14159 are looking into one for drinking water because up in tallahassee (where we're moving) they have known traces of chromium-6 in the water (you know, the stuff that causes cancer ) and a brita pitcher won't take that out, only the more advanced (and expensive) ones do it. i'd go check out that pitcher but unfortunately all we have around here as far as places like that go is best buy (out sold comp USA, which is a flea market now lol, and circuit city who i never really liked anyway)

but alas, we are about 2 or so hours away from there, and i wouldn't advise coming down here anyway, you might not make it out alive! (Palm Bay/Melbourne has the second highest concentration of heavy drinkers [right under reno! WTH! ] and we have the most dangerous strip of I95 [ which is the most dangerous road in the country as of now]) so we're awesome but i will buy buckets from home depot around when i have to move, i have one now and it's all i need

[cabezon]

@mwilliams it is called "zero water" I still use the pitcher part even though I now have RODI.

Dream- I think FL water is the best, extra crunchy. The first thing I do when I visit CT is drink water from the tap. When you get the RODI, get one that has a T before the DI chamber. That way you can get your drinking water. DI may not be safe to drink. Also it allows you to run out some water and lower the TDS going into the DI for a longer life of the resin. I fill my 5 gallon bottle wiith RO then fill my 50 gallon for the fish with RODI.

[mr_X]

CompUSA.com | ZD-013 | ZeroWater Pitcher

[mwilliams]

Found it thanks. I can not believe it they also sell the TDS Meter by itself as well.. What a find. Thanks this should hold me over till I can buy the RO/DI unit.

[iDream]

extra crunchy? lol and would a plain RO system be fine for a reef? or would the DI part be a worthwhile purchase?

[mr_X]

the D.I. would be an important item to have on your R.O. unit.

[cabezon]

I started with just RO. Then got the pitcher, then finally smarttened up and got the DI. The difference is the lowering of phosphates and sulfur going into the tank and fueling algae.

I got my RO Unit for $15 and the di was $5. Now the filters and media were costly. So in hindsight, that is probably one of the few pieces of equipment I would reccomend getting new.